Overruling Destiny
by ayshariham
Summary: Will Inoue's realisation about her love come too late? Final Chapter up!
1. Chapter 1

When I talk about Life and Death, it's more of a metaphorical addressing. They're not people xD Think of them as angels if you must.

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Ishida added the final touch to the rose. The velvety, crimson rose lay proudly in his hand. It was going to be his Valentine gift, a beauty of a flower made by the finest cloth he owned. The time was drawing closer, marking the start of an end. Or a new beginning.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

He checked his mobile for the new message. Some junk mail, he noted and tossed the mobile onto his bed.

The message still glowed on his mobile screen. "Destiny is but a game."

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_Life and Death had their heads bent over the board. They were going to begin yet another round of the game, to decide the destiny of the new set of souls. Her fingers, shaking slightly, Life drew out three cards from the pack and flipped them around. She gasped softly when she saw the names on the cards. The "I" trio again. She had played with them often before, and she had come so close to losing the cards to Death. She placed one of the cards on the board._

_She picked up the dice and let them roll between her fingers. The game had begun._

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The day was just another normal one.

Ishida got to school early, had a sandwich for his lunch, and finished all his class work.

Inoue arrived in the nick of time, had a bean and strawberry jam sandwich for lunch, and doodled cyborgs all over her notes.

Ichigo reached to school by the third lesson, got thrown out of class by the teacher, spent his break helping the teachers as a punishment and ran out of class during the fifth lesson to kill a Hollow.

The day would soon roll into the night.

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_The board was divided into two sections: Fortune and Misfortune. Life had to move her card across the Fortune Path until she reached the end. If she rolled a number that caused her card to fall onto any square marked "Danger", it became Death's turn to roll the dice. And this time the card would move along the Misfortune Path for one round._

_The Fortune Path contained squares like "Happiness", "Surprise", "Comfort" apart from the "Danger" spots in between._

_The Misfortune Path had squares like "Challenges", "Envy", "Peril". If Death managed to throw three sixes in a row, the card would end up in the "Surrender" section._

_Which meant Life gave over her card to Death._

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Inoue walked up the steep path to the cliff. She wanted a little peace. And maybe a little inspiration. The view from the cliff was really pretty, and the glow of the setting sun washed over her. Her thoughts wandered and settled on Him. What was she to do? Continue waiting for eternity…? Or should she-

A piercing shriek erupted through the peace, and a startled Inoue looked around.

Below, amidst the trees, a figure seemed to be running, probably chasing something. The stifling, murky aura emitting from the trees convinced her feelings of dread. There was no mistake about it, that was a Hollow.

Throwing caution to the wind, she ran towards the trees as fast as her legs could carry her.

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_Life frowned at the board. One of her cards was on "Trouble". If she wanted to bring it back onto the Fortune Path, she had to throw three sixes. Or she could add another card to the board. Risk it or save it?_

_She slowly added another card to the board._

_She rolled the dice._

_A number 3._

_Safe! Her card was on "Comfort" now._

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Ichigo was on his way home, exhausted from another bout of Hollow-ass-whacking. Maybe I'll take a short cut from under the cliff , he thought.

Five minutes into the dense cluster of trees, he realized something was wrong. The forest was suspiciously quiet, yet he knew the creatures in there were alarmed.

A sudden crash made him whirl around. Clutching his Shinigami Substitue badge, he ran towards the noise.

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Inoue whimpered as the crashing tree fell inches from her. The Hollow towered over her. Tsubaki flew around, unsure of whether to attack or retreat.

"Hurry and make up your mind already woman!" he cried out.

Inoue looked down at the soul of the little girl trembling near her feet. Her resolve strengthened, she glared up at the Hollow.

"_Solitary Sacred Cutting Shield_, I reject!" she cried, holding out her hands.

Thrashing around its arms, the Hollow bent a couple more trees, sending them crashing down. It gave out a loud, deep groan as Tsubaki made contact with its head.

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Inoue closed her eyes and covered her face as one of the trees came tumbling down towards her. Her eyes flew open when she realized she was being lifted away.

"Kurosak-" she began. Her eyes registered surprise when she saw a familiar bespectacled boy wipe sweat off his forehead as he put her down gently.

"Ishida-kun?" she said. "What….what are you doing here?"

"I practice by the waterfall a mile from here. When I felt that reiatsu, I hurried over. You shouldn't have tried to attack it, Inoue-san. You could have been seriously injured." he replied, looking at her worriedly.

"But…I think I killed it" whispered Inoue.

Ishida smiled at her. His eyes frowned anxiously at the clearing though.

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When Ichigo arrived, he only found the soul of the little girl. He wondered what had happened as he performed Konso on the soul.

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_Life sighed and pushed back her hair. Her second card was on "Challenge" now. Not too bad, she thought. She'd get it out soon._

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**Go on to Chapter 2. =)**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

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"Psst! Ishida-kun! Ishida-KUN! WAKE UP!" whispered Kiego furiously from the seat behind him. It was Maths class, and Ishida had falled asleep at his desk.

Ishida shook his head and opened his bloodshot eyes. He was so tired, he craved sleep.

He opened his books and checked his watch. No rest today, either, he thought.

It would be yet another sleepless night.

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_All three cards were on the board now. One was on "Perplexity". Another was on "Love". And the last one was on "Unrequited Love"_

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Ishida smoothened his shirt for the millionth time. Finally satisfied with his appearance, he grabbed the delicate rose from his table and left the house.

The calendar read February 14th.

Ishida was forcing himself to remain calm. This was the ultimate moment, something he had been waiting for a long time. He was going to confess to Inoue-san. Chills ran up and down his spine as he wondered about her response.

He slowed down when he neared her house. And then stopped altogether.

_**Ichigo**__ was at the door with Inoue, she was accepting a red rose from him, she was whispering something in his ears, they were laughing…._

He didn't wait to watch the rest. The rose slipped from his fingers, but he didn't wait to retrieve it as he ran away.

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_Death tapped his fingers on the board. The first card was still on "Perplexity". Nice, Nice…_

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Inoue was having a hard time sleeping. Memories, flashes of Ichigo and Ishida kept running through her dreams like a badly recorded video. She finally swung out of bed at 2am, and got herself a cup of warm milk. Hardly had she sipped it, that she felt the hair at the back of her neck rise.

_No, No, not now_, she thought desperately. _I'm not in a condition to fight_.

There was nowhere to hide. The Hollow was coming closer, driven by the desire of revenge.

Quivering with fear, she ran up towards the terrace of her apartment. The chill breeze bit at her skin, but Inoue didn't feel it. The Hollow was already there, hovering above her.

She didn't have time to scream. Or run. Or use her shield. Because, no sooner had she seen its appearance, she saw it crash to the ground, it's head pierced by a single bright blue arrow.

Inoue watched as the Hollow disintegrated, and looked up towards the water tank on the roof. His hair and clothes fluttering in the wind, the Quincy stood panting slightly, his white outfit contrasting dimly with the black night, the Quincy bow shining in his hand.

And oblivious to the logic in her brain that told her she was in love with Ichigo, her heart began to thump in tiny, short, bursts.

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_Life punched her fist into the air. Her first card was off the "Perplexity" square. It was on "Hope" now. The other two remained on "Unrequited Love" and "Love"_

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Inoue clutched her teddy bear close to her chest. Ichigo had asked her out on V-Day, and even though she had taken the rose, she hadn't given him an answer. She wondered why, when for the past few years, all she had been doing was wait for this moment.

She burrowed her head in the bear as she let reality smother her illusions.

She had to tell him. That she was in love with him. It didn't matter anymore, her shyness, her inadequacy. She was connected to him on a different level from the others. There was no reason for her to lose him.

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_Death glanced at the card on the board. He wanted that soul, he could feel the power radiating off it. It would be a priceless collection to his deck of cards._

C'mon, land on Danger already_, he thought impatiently._

_And half a minute later, it did._

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Ishida waited in the park. It was twilight and the sky was overcast. He wished he had thought of bringing an umbrella. Sticking his hands in his pocket, he paced the pavement. He wasn't sure if he could face her, be normal around her. He wondered what she wanted.

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_Death rolled the dice once. To Life's dismay, it toppled over to a six. She had seen this happen so many times before. A tear trickled down her cheek. Two more chances to go. _If the card ended up in Surrender_…Life shuddered at the thought._

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Inoue ran madly towards the direction of the park. She felt a drop of water on her hand, then her arm, her hair. It had begun to rain, a light drizzle, threatening a heavy downpour soon. She wished she had an umbrella.

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_Life waited with bated breath as the dice dropped from Death's hand. It was useless. Another six emerged. The tears flowed faster._

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Inoue was worried. She was nearing the park, but she was afraid Ishida would leave if he didn't have an umbrella. She dug out her mobile from her purse and dialed his number.

"Ishida-kun!" she shouted over the shrill wind. "Please stay at the park, I'll be there in a minute!"

She didn't hang up as the park came into view. "Can you see me?" she shouted into her mobile, giggling.

The trees bordering the park were half bent against the empowering wind. She could see Ishida now; he was next to the tallest Oak tree.

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_Death grinned as he picked up the dice again. And even as the dice rolled off his hand, Life knew it was over. The third six appeared._

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Inoue wiped the rain off her face as she ran towards Ishida. She felt her heart thump faster at his sight. The perfection that he was, she wondered why she didn't see it earlier. Those cute bangs framing his glasses, that smile that gave her the tiny shivers, those dark eyes that looked into her soul…

She never saw it coming.

A white-hot flash electrified her as Inoue got shot down by a bolt of lightning.

She stumbled and fell. The searing pain came and went in a second. When she got up, Ishida was standing near her head, his eyes wide in shock. She was trembling violently, and hugged herself. She was still shaky, but she could get up.

She stood up and followed the path of his eyes. She had seen this before, the day her Hollow-Brother had come to visit her. Her soul had been thrown out of her body, held together by that silver chain. It was a horrible memory, watching her own body lying in sleep. Déjà vu…

She looked down and saw the chain intertwined in her chest.

Except this time the silver chain was not connected to her human body.

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The idea for this came to me during BioChem class, when I saw an amazing picture of lightning.

Let me know what you thought of it… =)


	3. Chapter 3

The last chapter for this story =) Enjoy…

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_Life pushed away the board in disbelief. This couldn't be happening again… She didn't mind much when she was playing with the cards of older souls… But this girl…She was only 18..._

"_Give me back my card" she wailed at Death._

_He grinned and flipped the card between his fingers. "No way, I won it fair and square."_

_She wiped her face. "I want a break" said Life quietly, and left the game._

_Time stopped in the world._

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Ishida didn't think his brain was functioning anymore. What was that…? Some stupid prank of the heavens? Maybe his vision was blurring up… Pathetic joke, really, messing with his eyes.

And yet, inside himself, he knew he was lying to himself. He had seen it happening, in all its vividness.

His eyes strayed back to the body. The contents of her purse were strewn across the grass, and in the dying sunlight, he noticed his Rose.

His mind still hadn't processed it, he hadn't even begin to think. His insides were burning and his lungs seemed to be choking him.

He succumbed to the welcoming arms of darkness, relieving him of his shocked state.

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When Ishida opened his eyes, he wondered where he was. Pearly white fog (or was it smoke) enveloped him.

Maybe in a dream, maybe in heaven. With a jolt, he remembered the horrible night at the park. When was that…ten years ago? Or was it a week? A minute ago…?

He sat up and looked around.

Two beings were sitting at a table, occupied in what seemed to be a board-game.

He walked over slowly, noticing the contrast of black and white glows between the two of them.

_Life looked at him sadly. "I'm sorry" she whispered._

_Somehow it made sense to him. It was like being in a dream, where even nonsense seems completely logical. Here was some fairy-like being, apologizing for taking away Inoue. Did they kidnap her…? No… she wasn't sorry about that. She was sorry for Inoue….dy…dyi…_

_He wasn't even able to think it._

_Ishida looked at them blankly. "Give back Inoue-san" he said. He wasn't pleading for them to give her back. He wasn't requesting them either. It was like stating a fact. Inoue was his. As long as he was alive, she had to be alive. It didn't matter who pulled the strings, they weren't going to mess with his soul._

_Life bit her lip nervously. "I…I can't… I don't know what to do…He won it" she whispered._

"_I LOVE her!" cried out Ishida. "I love her with every fibre of my being, and I will continue to do so. She's a part of me! Give her BACK, you JERK", he said, grabbing Death's cloak._

_Death sneered. "Love? Why do you waste your precious souls loving, when I can snatch them away from you in a second? What is love, anyways? Silly emotions…"_

Ishida released him. He was shaken, the pain was starting to grow, numbing his brain.

Think, Think, he furiously told himself. There's a way out. There's always a way out…

"Love…is…her. She's my form of love…She…She took my heart. Conquered it. Love conquers all..." He knew he was muttering gibberish, who cared what love was? It was what bound them, he just had to find -

"_That's it! My Conquest Card" exclaimed Life, slamming her hand on the table._

_She got up and disappeared into the mist. She returned in a moment, an orange card in her hand. Ishida stared at it in confusion, but Death's eyes widened._

"_D'you remember when I received this card?" she asked him, a smile playing on her lips. She continued, not waiting for a response, "It was when I first played with the Inoue card. 18 years ago…"_

_She faced Ishida. "The conquest card is like…a wild card. A joker. Whatever you want to call it, it has a greater power over the other cards. Inoue has special powers, that's why I got this card when I picked out her card."_

_Ishida's confusing cleared up a little. Inoue's powers…The ability to reject events…_

"_This card…Does it have Inoue's rejection powers?" he asked, his eyes lighting up._

_Life shook her head. "Not exactly. But they are something similar to her powers. You can turn back time with this."_

_Hope flooded Ishida. This was it, the Ace card!_

_Death cleared his throat. "Surely, you haven't forgotten the price of using such a card?" he asked Life._

_The smile left her face, but she looked back at him steadily. "Rolling a dice six times, descending, and a priced possession of the other souls involved in the particular round."_

_Death grinned one of his gumless grins. "Alright, here are the dice. Go ahead, let's see you roll a six, a five, a four…Oh wait, you won't even get that far. You always have trouble rolling a six…What are the "priced possessions gonna be anyways?" He laughed._

_Ishida whispered into Life's ears. She nodded and placed the Conquest card in the middle of the board. Her hands shaking, she picked up the dice._

_Ishida took hold of her hands. "I want to roll the dice too. Can I?" he whispered looking at the dice in her hand._

_She didn't pull her hand away. She closed her eyes, hoping against hope for a six. She felt Ishida's hand close her palm, and when he released her hand, she let go of the dice._

_When she opened her eyes, she saw Ishida smiling._

It was a six.

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Inoue didn't know where she was. It was a murky, yet colorful place. She lay on her back and watched the world flow by. "Ishida-kun" she whispered, "Where are you now…?"

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_Ishida closed her hand across the dice again. Squeezing her hand reassuringly, he let go. Life opened the hands, feeling the dice roll along._

_It was a five._

_The next dice rolled into a four._

_The next rolled into a three._

_Two followed it._

_Death looked displeased._

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"I think I'm in love with you, Ishida-kun" whispered Inoue to the murky colour around her. "I don't know when, I don't know how… I'm glad I got to meet you, Ishida-kun. I'm glad I grew in your comfort, basked in your love…I wanted to hold you tight, Ishida-kun, I wanted to heal your soul, I wanted to kiss away your pain…I wanted to do so much for you, Ishida-kun. The fears you kept locked away inside, I wanted to take them away…

I want to see you again, Ishida-kun. Will you come for me? Will you save me from myself? Ichigo always came to save me, but for him, I was just one of those in a mountain of people. He wants to protect the world. I want my knight, Ishida-kun, I'm not strong alone. I want you because you want to protect me for me and you, not because it's your duty as a hero...

Will you take me back, Ishida-kun?"

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_The last dice rolled into a one._

"_I'll definitely take you back, Inoue-san" whispered Ishida, looking at the dice._

_Death frowned, and grudgingly placed Inoue's card back on the board._

_Life couldn't believe she had managed to win back a card. She grinned at Ishida, and even as he saw her smile, they began to fade away._

_He smiled himself. It had been so easy. He had placed the dice on her palm in such a manner, that when it rolled it would have turned exactly four times for it to hit the board. The first three times, it would have crossed her fingers. The fourth turn would have caused it to fall on the board, the number he had chosen face-up. A 360 degree turn…_

_He wondered if it was cheating. Didn't matter, the Higher-Ups didn't seem to think so… All's fair in love and war, right?_

_The world turned a pearly white as he walked back in time._

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Ishida found himself standing in the park. It was twilight, and the wind was whistling around him. Inoue was nowhere in sight.

His mobile rang in his pocket. He quickly pulled it out. Inoue was shouting on the other end of the line. "Yes, Inoue-san, I'm right here. Where are you?" he asked.

"Just a min" she said " I have a call on the other line"

The clouds above were rumbling with thunder. He waited till she came back on his line. "That was Ichigo" she said, "I tripped while talking though…Ow, my knee feels raw…"

He saw her come into view, giggling and waving her arms, still talking into the phone.

"Ishida-kun, can you see me!?" she asked.

He laughed, and walked towards her, still talking into his phone. "Yes, Inoue-san, be careful, don't run so recklessly…" A slight nervousness clawed at him.

The sudden bolt of lightning which shot down crashed a metre ahead of Inoue. She shrieked and dropped her phone. Ishida ran towards her, thanking the heavens above. Ichigo's call had delayed her. _It was over, he had done it…_

When he knelt down next to her, he pulled her close to him before she could say anything. There was no need for words, silence was always louder. Tears pricking her eyes, she hugged him back, relishing the warmth of his body.

When they pulled away, she opened her purse. . "I found your rose, Ishida-kun," she said as she searched for it, "You should have just given it to me, instead of…" she trailed away as confusion crossed her face.

"I know I put it in here." she said, her damp eyes looking at him. "Where'd it go?"

Ishida smiled. "It doesn't matter. I'm just glad you are back" he said.

The rain began to shower lightly.

_Back? What'd he mean_, thought Inoue. She didn't have time to delve on his words though; Ishida was pulling her face towards his.

_The price he paid was his Rose. It would be harder trying to explain to Ichigo where his prized possession had gone to,_ he thought. His lips touched Inoue's and in that moment of sheer bliss, he shed all of his thoughts. He would worry later…

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Death looked away in disgust.

"Stop crying already" he told Life. "Let's start the new round"

Wiping away tears of happiness, she reached down to pull out the next set of cards.

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Ichigo was perplexed. "Rukia!", he called out, "did you find it!?"

"No" replied Rukia. "I can't believe you are so carelss, Ichigo" she said, doodling a rabbit on Ichigo's desk.

"Darn it. Where'd it go….?" he said, running his hand through his hair in frustration.

This was how, a week later, Rukia was on her way to Soul Society, carrying a letter which requested a replacement for Ichigo's Substitue Shinigami badge.

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Hope you liked it =D


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